RECENT FAMILY LAW DECISIONS
Where petitioner had sufficient resources for which to pay her attorney and there was no indication that such payment would strip the petitioner of her means of support or undermine her financial stability, the trial court did not abuse its discretion by requiring each party to pay its own attorney’s fees.
The trial court did not abuse its discretion in requiring defendant to pay a portion of plaintiff’s attorney fees incurred in connection with several post-decree proceedings.
The trial court did not abuse its discretion in awarding attorney fees to plaintiff, since plaintiff was not required to exhaust her estate to protect her rights in the marital litigation, and where she was financially unable to pay the fees but defendant was able to do so.
A plaintiff’s contention that the court abused its discretion by ordering him to pay the defendant’s attorney’s fees of $5,000 within 90 days of the entry of the supplemental judgment for divorce was without merit since additional time was not required to make the payment.
In light of former husband’s ability to absorb some of the legal costs of divorce, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in awarding former wife $2,000 in attorney fees.
Where custodial modification appeared to have been sought primarily for the convenience of the parties rather than as a means of properly presenting the needs of the children to the court, the court did not abuse its discretion in denying plaintiff’s petition for attorney fees.
The well-established principle that the amount of attorney fees rests in the sound discretion of the trial judge, and will not be interfered with unless abused, applies to support awards.
The allowance of attorney fees in a divorce proceeding is not automatic, but depends on a showing that one spouse is financially unable to pay the fees, while the other is able to do so.
The decisions whether to grant periodic alimony, attorney fees, and suit money rest in the sound discretion of the circuit court.
The matter of fixing attorney fees is one of the few areas in which a trial judge may rely on the pleadings, affidavits on file and on his own experience.
Former section 15 of the Divorce Act authorized the trial court to order the payment of such attorney fees as may seem equitable, regardless of the disposition of the case.
The awarding of attorney fees rests in the sound discretion of the trial court and will not be interfered with unless such discretion is clearly abused.
Ability to Pay
In General
The trial court did not err in requiring ex-wife to pay a majority of her attorney fees.
For purposes of determining an award of attorney fees, financial inability exists where the forced payment of available funds would strip a person of his or her means of support and undermine his or her economic stability.
The party seeking attorney fees must show an inability to pay, and the ability of the other spouse to pay fees.
Before one spouse may recover attorney fees from the other, the spouse seeking fees must demonstrate that he or she is financially unable to pay and that the other spouse has the ability to pay; a mere showing that the other spouse has a greater ability to pay attorney fees is not sufficient to justify an award of fees under this section.
Under subdivision (a)(5) a court need not determine the ability or inability of a party to pay the requested fees.
